Giftify’s CardCash Launches Campus Gift Card Exchange Program With Follett Higher Education Campus Bookstores
Partnership expected to reach approximately 700 locations by August 2026, including stores serving Stanford University and the University of Texas, creating a new customer acquisition channel and a new source of gift card supply ahead of the back-to-school season
SCHAUMBURG, IL, June 29, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Giftify, Inc. (NASDAQ: GIFT) (the “Company”), the owner and operator of CardCash.com, Restaurant.com, and Takeout7.com, and a leader in the incentives and rewards industry, today announced a new partnership between CardCash.com and Follett Higher Education to bring gift card exchange capabilities to campus bookstore locations nationwide, establishing a significant new channel for growing its customer base and expanding gift card supply for the CardCash platform.
The program enables students, parents, and campus visitors to exchange unused gift cards for spendable value at participating campus store locations, providing a convenient, in-person channel for converting unwanted gift cards into immediate purchasing power for textbooks, apparel, technology, dorm essentials, and other everyday campus needs.
When fully rolled out across all approximately 700 campus bookstore locations by August 2026 — including stores serving major universities such as Stanford University and the University of Texas — this program is expected to represent CardCash’s largest single physical retail footprint.
Campus stores today serve a broad role beyond textbooks — offering apparel, technology, dorm essentials, food, and gifts — making them a central shopping destination for students and families, especially during graduation and the back-to-school season.
“The Follett Higher Education partnership gives CardCash a meaningful physical presence across approximately 700 campus locations at exactly the moments when students and families are most actively spending,” said Ketan Thakker, Chief Executive Officer of Giftify, Inc. “This partnership is first and foremost a customer acquisition channel — bringing new users into the CardCash ecosystem at the moments when they’re already thinking about spending. It also creates a meaningful new source of gift card supply, as students and families bring in cards they might otherwise never redeem. We see this as an important step in both growing our customer base and deepening the liquidity of our platform.”
“We’re meeting customers at a moment when they’re already spending, whether it’s for textbooks, apparel, or graduation,” said Tom Ochoa, Head of Sales & Business Development at CardCash. “By bringing CardCash into campus stores, we’re removing friction and making it easier to convert unused gift cards into real purchasing power.”
The program also creates new opportunities around key seasonal moments, including graduation, when families and friends are purchasing gifts and campus merchandise, and late summer, when students return to campus and spending increases across multiple categories.
The partnership reflects CardCash’s continued investment in high-frequency retail environments that attract first-time users and unlock gift card value that would otherwise go unredeemed.
About Giftify, Inc.
Giftify, Inc. (NASDAQ: GIFT) is a pioneer in the incentive and rewards industry with a focus on retail, dining, and entertainment experiences, as the owner and operator of leading digital platforms, CardCash.com, and Restaurant.com. CardCash.com is a leading secondary gift card exchange platform, allowing consumers and retailers to realize value by buying and selling gift cards at various scales from over 1,100 retailers. Restaurant.com is the nation’s largest restaurant-focused digital deals brand, connecting digital consumers, businesses, and communities by offering thousands of dining, retail, and entertainment deal options nationwide at over 184,000 restaurants and retailers. For more information, visit www.giftifyinc.com, www.cardcash.com, and www.restaurant.com
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding Giftify’s future financial and operational performance, business strategy, AI deployment roadmap, marketplace growth, and market position. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: changes in consumer spending patterns; competition in the gift card and restaurant deals markets; our ability to maintain and expand relationships with merchants and corporate clients; our ability to achieve and maintain profitability; our liquidity and ability to raise additional capital; general economic conditions; and other risks detailed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. The Company has identified substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern as disclosed in the accompanying Form 10-Q; see the 10-Q for further detail. The forward-looking statements in this press release are made as of the date hereof, and Giftify undertakes no obligation to update these statements or to explain the reasons why actual results may differ.
Investor Contact: Giftify, Inc. | IR@giftifyinc.com
